Changing the way marketing people work

On page xiii of his well written book "The New Influencers", Mr. Paul Gillin writes this:

"The new [marketing] discipline is coming to be known as conversation marketing. It means creating a dialog with customers in which useful information is exchanged so that both parties benefit from the relationship. As trust builds, customers develop loyalty that makes them long-term partners, leading to a more lasting relationship.

Conversation marketing requires a completely different set of skills than those which have dominated the marketing profession for the last two generations. It means throwing out the spreadsheets and the mailing lists. It means ditching terms like “reach”, “frequency”, “impressions” and “click-through rates”. It means understanding who your customers are, who influences them and how to engage with those influencers. It means exchanging information, not delivering a message."

On page 205-206, Mr. Gillin writes:

"Traditional marketing and traditional media will always have a role to play in commerce. They will morph and adapt to changing demographic trends. But it is clear that growth will be centred around conversation-based tactics. The next generation of customers will want to interact with businesses in very different ways. The New Influencers are here to stay. Your challenge and your opportunity is in learning how to influence them and becoming an influencer yourself."

How are marketing people at the company, you work for, changing the way they do things?